Squalls to the left of us, squals to the right of us - Day 14

Ladybug is definitely in the doldrums. We have spent the last 24 hours dodging squalls and listening to the rain pound the decks in a torrential deluge. The squalls sometimes pack a punch, with winds increasing to 25 knots or more, resulting in frantic sail changes- three of these last night in the wee hours. I did one sail change sans clothes and had a very effective shower at the same time. We found a leak in the cabin 'roof' where the traveller for the main sheet is attached and had to take apart the interior to find and fix this. In one of the squalls I sacrificed the rubber end of our flashlight to Neptune when the jib sheet was jerked out of my hands.

The radar has been a great help in squall watching - they show up as evil looking chunks on the screen in contrast to the elegant little blips that a ship would make. We are fairly near a shipping lane that runs from Panama to the Philippines, so the person on watch has to be doubly vigilant.

As of 14:30 zulu on April 3, we were at position N 06 23 and W 128 28. We ran 126 miles but only 99 of those in the right direction. Hot and muggy below with all hatches battened down.